Computer-based systems and methods for facilitating aircraft approach

ABSTRACT

A graphical user interface (GUI) system for facilitating aircraft approaching and landing includes a database for storing airfields information and associated one or more approach patterns. The system also includes a display screen with user input interface configured for selecting a pattern for an aircraft to approach and land on an airfield, displaying the selected pattern in an overhead graphical view of the airfield according to the related information stored in the database. The system further includes a processing unit in signal communication with the database, one or more aircraft position sensors, and the display screen. The processing unit is configured to receive aircraft location and movement information from one or more aircraft sensors, airfield information from the database, and user input from the user input interface to determine display content and format of the display content on the display screen.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. Non-provisional patentapplication Ser. No. 17/079,956, filed on Oct. 26, 2020, which is acontinuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/942,671, filed Apr.2, 2018, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationSer. No. 62/479,401, filed on Mar. 31, 2017, U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 62/542,498, filed on Aug. 8, 2017, U.S. ProvisionalPatent Application Ser. No. 62/542,483, filed on Aug. 8, 2017, and U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/637,090, filed on Mar. 1,2018, the contents of which applications are herein incorporated byreference in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to computer-based flight aids, and moreparticularly, to systems and methods for facilitating approaches andlandings conducted under visual and instrument flight rules (VFR).

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Numerous computer-based tools have been developed to assist pilots withvarious aspects of flying an airplane. For example, navigationalprograms exist that allow a pilot to enter a destination and/orwaypoints for a trip and have the same displayed on a moving map, alongwith a recommended course and speed. Instrument landing systems (ILSs)also exist that provide visual indications to guide a pilot duringlanding. While such systems have proved useful and reliable, furtherimprovements are possible.

For instance, many approaches and landings are made under visual flightrules (VFR). While clear guidelines exist as to the requirements for VFRapproaches and landings, implementing those guidelines in the cockpitwhile also piloting the aircraft under stressful conditions can be asignificant challenge, even for experienced pilots. During an approach,a pilot can have to monitor other traffic, handle communications andland the plane—under the constraints of the VFR approach and landingguidelines.

In addition, landing on a moving runway such as a flight deck of anaircraft carrier is one of the most difficult things a navy pilot willever do. A flight deck is only a short runway but a moving one.Therefore, a system with automatic runway computing and an intuitivedisplay of the landing profile will greatly benefit a pilot in landingon a moving runway.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention toprovide computer-based systems and methods for facilitating aircraftapproaches to runways. In particular, it is an object of the inventionto provide a graphical user interface that will allow a user to selectquickly and intuitively a desired VFR approach pattern for a runway andprovide a visual depiction of the selected pattern.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a graphical userinterface (GUI) system for facilitating aircraft approaching and landingincludes a database for storing airfields information and associated oneor more approach patterns. The system also includes a display screenwith user input interface configured for selecting a pattern for anaircraft to approach and land on an airfield, displaying the selectedpattern in an overhead graphical view of the airfield according to therelated information stored in the database. The system further includesa processing unit in signal communication with the database, one or moreaircraft position sensors, and the display screen. The processing unitis configured to receive aircraft location and movement information fromone or more aircraft sensors, airfield information from the database,and user input from the user input interface to determine displaycontent and format of the display content on the display screen.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, acomputer-based system for facilitating aircraft approach and landingincludes a user input interface configured for selecting and approachingan airfield and a display format and a processing unit in signalcommunication with the database and user input interface. The processingunit is configured for determining aircraft position and movement inrelation to the selected airfield and calculating an approach patternbased on the aircraft position and the selected airfield. The systemfurther includes a display screen configured for displaying the aircraftmovement corresponding spatially to the calculated approach pattern in aselected display format.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, acomputer-based GUI system for facilitating aircraft approaching andlanding on a moving runway includes a runway position determination unitconfigured to determine location and movement of a moving runway in realtime. A processing unit is configured to receive aircraft location andmovement information from an aircraft location sensor and receive runwaylocation and movement information from the runway determination unit.The processing unit is configured to determine an approach pattern basedon real time location data for the aircraft and the runway. The systemfurther includes a display screen with a user input interface configuredfor approaching the input runway based on associated airfieldinformation and a specific display format displaying the calculatedpattern in the specific display format.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a method forfacilitating aircraft approach includes storing information of one ormore airfields and one or more approach patterns associated with the oneor more airfields in a database of a computer-based system. An approachpattern is selected based on location and movement of an aircraft and anairfield received via a user input interface of the computer-basedsystem. The aircraft movement corresponding spatially to the selectedapproach pattern is calculated via a processing unit of thecomputer-based system. The aircraft movement corresponding spatially tothe approach pattern is displayed in a selected view via a displayscreen of the computer-based system.

These and other objects, aspects and advantages of the present inventionwill be better appreciated in view of the drawings and followingdetailed description of preferred embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the system for facilitating aircraftapproaching and landing, according to another embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is another block diagram of the system for facilitating aircraftapproaching and landing, according to another embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 is a screen view of an airfield selection screen of acomputer-based system for facilitating aircraft approach, according toan embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is another screen view of an airfield selection screen of thesystem, according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a screen view of a VFR sectional chart of the system,according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a screen view of a IFR chart of the system, according toanother embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a screen view of an overhead graphical view of the systemafter user makes a section to an airfield;

FIG. 8 is a screen view of a runway selection screen, according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a screen view after runway selection, further displayingapproach selection indicators;

FIG. 10 is a screen view after approach selection, further displayingthe select approach and applicable altitude gates;

FIG. 11 is a tabular view of system defaults used in connection withapproach displays;

FIG. 12 is a screen view including a keypad for altering aspects of thedisplayed approach;

FIG. 13 is a view of alternate keypad setups based on differentcircumstances;

FIG. 14 is a schematic overview of an automatic downwind extension of adisplayed approach;

FIG. 15 is a schematic overview of an automatic display update attendantupon a go around or rejected landing;

FIGS. 16-18 are schematic overviews of a glide path guidance indicator,under different aircraft conditions;

FIG. 19 is a screen view of an airfield search/selection screen;

FIG. 20 is a screen view after approach selection, incorporatingcommunications facilitation features;

FIG. 21 is a screen view showing turning radius of a selected approachpattern;

FIGS. 22-25 are screen views of an overhead graphical view including avertical horizontal indicator (VHI) indicator and associated keypads,according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 26-27 illustrate a screen view of a landing site creation for aselected runway;

FIG. 28 illustrates a screen view of a landing site creation for a seaplane;

FIGS. 29-32 illustrate an overhead graphical view of various displayscreen for a helicopter vertical landing;

FIGS. 33-46 are split screen views of a head-up display on the left sideand a corresponding overhead graphical view on the right side;

FIG. 47 is an example full screen view of a head-up display;

FIG. 48 is a split screen view having a head-up display superimposed ona camera view;

FIG. 49 is a full screen view of an augmented reality head-up display;

FIG. 50 illustrates a head-up display on a user's mobile device or avisor on a helmet; and

FIG. 51 is a flowchart illustrating a method for facilitating aircraftapproaching and landing, according to another embodiment of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a computer-basedsystem and method for facilitating aircraft approach are implemented ona computer device including one or more processors, memory storagedevices, user input devices and displays. Preferably, the computerdevice is further configured to transmit and receive data via a network,such as the Internet and/or other local or wide area network. Thecomputer device can be implemented in any form, but a personalelectronic device such as a tablet computer or smart phone with atouch-screen display is a preferred embodiment. Additionally, thecomputer device could be configured for integration into the instrumentpanel of an aircraft. Moreover, the computer device could be integratedinto or configured to interface with other aircraft systems (e.g., anautopilot system, navigational system, etc.), as well as control systemsexternal to the aircraft (e.g., some type of active ground-based controlor tracking system).

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , according to one embodiment of the presentinvention, a GUI system 100 for facilitating aircraft approaching andlanding can include a database 102, a display screen 104 with a userinput interface 106, and a processing unit 108.

The database 102 is configured for storing airfield information and oneor more associated approach patterns for many airfields. As an example,the airfield information stored in the database 102 can include airfieldinformation, runway information and runway end information for aparticular airfield. The airfield information can include coordinates,an identifier, a designator, a location indicator, name, type, filedelevation, ownership type, manager and radio frequency associated withone or more airfields. The runway information can include an identifier,designator, length, width, composition, surface condition, and longitudeand latitude of runway ends. The runway end information can include anidentifier, a designator, coordinates, bearing, elevation, elevation ofa touchdown zone, and a glide path associated with the runway end.

The user input interface 106 is configured for selecting an approachpattern for aircraft approaching and landing and displaying the selectedpattern in an overhead graphical view of the corresponding airfieldaccording to the related information stored in the database 102.

The display screen 104 is configured to display an overhead graphicalview such as an aerial view or a satellite view. As an example,airfield, runway, pattern altitude, entry angle, and respective lengthsassociated with a downwind base leg and one or more altitude gates,descent gates, and glide path guidance indicator are displayed in theoverhead graphical view. The display screen 104 is further configuredfor displaying an airfield information diagram and a standard aviationchart. The display screen 104 can also display one or more of aircraftcoordinates, altitude, horizontal accuracy, vertical accuracy, course,speed, and timestamp of the aircraft in real-time.

The display screen 104 is further configured to display a head-updisplay (HUD) superimposed on a camera view. As an example, a fullscreen HUD is displayed. As another example, a split view is displayed.In this case, a HUD superimposed on a camera view is displayed on oneside of the display screen 104 and an overhead graphical view of anairfield to be approached is displayed on the other side of the displayscreen 104. The HUD view can include a guidance box configured toindicate an aircraft real-time position in relation to a selectedapproach pattern.

The display screen 104 can be updated periodically in response toaircraft movement. The display screen 104 can be configured to usecolored indicators to distinguish between different types of airfields(e.g., public, private, military, helicopter and seaplane base).

The user input interface 106 includes a data entry keypad. The dataentry keypad is dynamically updated based on an approach pattern andcurrent location of the aircraft relative to the approach pattern. Forexample, a first keypad is displayed to select an airfield (e.g., textentry search). As another example, a second keypad is displayed toselect an approach pattern. As another example, a third keypad isdisplayed to modify a selected approach pattern. As another example, afourth keypad is displayed to define a landing lane and a correspondingapproach pattern.

The system processing unit 108 is configured to receive aircraftlocation and movement information from the one or more aircraft sensors,airfield information from the database 102, and user input from the userinput interface 106, to determine display content and format of thedisplay content on the display screen. As an example, the aircraftlocation and movement information includes global positioning system(GPS), and inertial navigation system (INS) system, a camera, and alaser sensor, computer vision, and the like. For example, at least onecamera and computer vision can acquire, process, and analyze videodigital images obtained by one or more camera, and extracthigh-dimensional data from the real world in order to produce numericalor symbolic information. As such, visual images is transformed intonumerical and/or symbolic information (e.g., location information,moving speed, etc.) that can interface with thought processes of theprocession unit 108.

As an example, the processing unit 108 is configured to select a defaultapproach pattern based on aircraft location and movement. As anotherexample, the processing unit 108 is configured to calculate or updateautomatically an approach pattern if a previously selected pattern doesnot apply to current aircraft location and movement. As another example,the processing unit 108 is configured to calculate one or more turningradii of an approach pattern based on aircraft location, movement andweather condition. As another example, the processing unit 108 canreceive a calculated approach pattern from a third party (e.g., a airtraffic control system).

According to another embodiment of the present invention, when a runwayis moving, the system further includes a runway position determinationunit 110 configured to determine runway location and movement inreal-time. For example, the runway position determination unit 110 isconfigured to receive signals indicating location and orientation of therunway from one or more transmitters on the moving runway. In this case,the processing unit 108 is further configured to receive runway locationand movement information from the runway determination unit anddetermine an approach pattern based on real time location of theaircraft and runway. Alternatively or additionally, runway informationcan be manually input by a user (e.g., pilot). The processing unit 108is configured to account for the real-time location of the moving runwayin calculating aircraft movement corresponding spatially to the selectedapproach pattern.

Referring to FIG. 3 , an opening page on the display screen of the GUIsystem 100 includes a plurality of circles and each circle represents anairfield. A pinch gesture to zoom in will display more airfields. Thecircles are color codes with each color representing a different type ofairfield. Referring to FIG. 4 , the number of airfields can be filteredby a user indicating the type of airfield to be displayed. Airfieldinformation and the associated one or more approach patterns can bestored in a database.

The display screen 104 is configured to display an overhead graphicalview of an airfield to be approached. For example, referring to FIG. 5 ,when the user selects “US VFR Sectional” view, the VFR sectional view ofa corresponding area is displayed. As another example, referring to FIG.6 , when user selects “US IFR Enroute-Low” view, the IFR Enroute-Lowchart of the corresponding area will be displayed. Other views can bedisplayed, such as standard aviation charts and airfield informationdiagrams.

The GUI system 100 is also configured to select and display an airfieldpattern in a graphical view on the display screen. Referring to FIG. 7 ,after the user has selected an airfield, runways and possible approachpatterns are displayed on the display screen. The possible approachpatterns are shown as six additional buttons. Each button represents adifferent traffic pattern.

Referring to FIG. 8 , an aerial or satellite view of an airfield issuperimposed on the display of an airfield indicator (KORL in FIG. 8 )and indicators of each runway (07/25 and 13/31 in FIG. 8 ). For example,the indicators for the straight-in (S) and direct-to-final (DF)approaches are in the middle of their respective rows and aligned withthe runway and runway indicator. For approaches with a base leg [i.e.,downwind (R and L) and direct-to-base approaches (DBR and DBL)], theindicators are to the right or left of the central indicator (right andleft being relative to the selected runway). Thus, the positions of theindicators correspond to the direction in which the base leg, whendrawn, would extend away from the final leg.

The overall display orientation, once an airfield is selected, ispreferably set to place the current bearing to the airfield from theaircraft at the top of the display. Alternate orientations can beselected (e.g., north at the top, aircraft heading at the top, etc.). Tofacilitate an intuitive runway selection, each runway indicator islocated adjacent the beginning of image of the corresponding runway.Upon selecting the desired runway to approach, indicators for eachapproach type are then displayed for the selected runway, as shown inFIG. 9 . Preferably, the indicators are arranged in two rows of three,the axis of each row being perpendicular to the selected runway and therows and the middle indicators of each row being aligned with the runway(and selected runway indicator) in a location before the beginning ofthe runway.

Referring to FIG. 10 , once one of the several approaches is selected,the selected approach route is overlaid, to scale, on the display screen104. Preferably, by reselecting the airfield indicator, the runwayindicators are redisplayed to allow the user to select a differentapproach option. A status indicator is advantageously also displayed,allowing the user to see at a glance which airfield, runway and approachare selected. The “A1” and “STD” terms refer to standard approachesusing predefined parameters in the system, which will be discussed ingreater detail below.

Cross-hatches on the displayed approach route represent altitude gates,with corresponding altitudes, preferably automatically referenced tomean sea level, also displayed. In FIG. 11 , the cross-hatch on thearrival leg (pattern altitude gate) represents the point at which theaircraft should have descended to pattern altitude, drawn at apredetermined distance before the entry point. The cross-hatch on thedownwind leg (descent gate) represents the point at which the aircraftshould begin descending to an altitude so as to intercept the properglide path on final. The descent gate is drawn at a 90-degree angle fromthe beginning of the runway being approached. When the aircraft reachesfinal landing, a glide path intercept gate is advantageously alsodisplayed on final prior to actual interception of the glide pathaltitude.

It will be appreciated that a VFR approach can be performed according toone of several prescribed patterns, with each VFR pattern having one ormore legs with dimensional parameters relative to one or more referencepoints along the length of the runway being approached for landing. Acommon leg in any VFR approach is the leg aligned with the runway onwhich the aircraft makes its final descent to a landing (or abortedlanding).

The user interface implemented by the system and method of the claimedinvention allows a pattern corresponding to any VFR approach (includingapproach, arrival and landing segments) to be displayed with only twoinputs required from the user—regardless of the runway or type ofapproach desired. Moreover, the arrangement of the selection indicatorsallows for a highly intuitive selection, in which the location of theindicators corresponds spatially to the desired pattern.

One manner in which the system and method allow for rapid selection of awide variety of patterns is the use of “standard” pattern defaultvalues. Referring to FIG. 11 , three sets of default values are shown(A1, A1.5 and A2). These settings are shortcuts for quick display of oneof three common approach patterns associated with three categories ofaircraft. Specifically, A1 is designed for low-performance pistonaircraft, A1.5 for high-performance and multi-engine piston aircraft,and A2 for turbine- or jet-powered aircrafts.

As can be seen in FIG. 10 , the A1 defaults were used to generate thedisplayed route. The user can preselect a set of default values to beused for the initial generation of approach routes for display andselect different default values after a an initial route is drawn. Whilethe depicted default values represent a pre-loaded preferred embodiment,the user can enter and save custom values.

In addition to permitting quick selections based on default values, theuser input interface also facilitate deviations from the default valuesusing a data entry keypad. Referring to FIG. 12 , the keypad isadvantageously implemented via the display and is automaticallyreconfigurable by the system. In FIG. 12 , the keypad offers selectionsfor a user to set a different pattern altitude, entry angle, anddifferent lengths for the downwind and base legs. As can be seen,although the A1 defaults were selected, the user has used the keypad toenter a 2000-foot pattern altitude, which is automatically updated onthe display. Since pattern altitudes are typically referenced to adistance above ground level (AGL), whereas the pilot is flying at analtitude above mean sea level (MSL), the keypad allows entry in AGLvalues and automatically converts to MSL for the display. It should benoted the default pattern can be varied based on the type of aircraftand other aircraft location and movement factors.

To further facilitate timely data entry, the keypad selections arepreferably dynamically updated based on the current circumstances—as thetypes of default values a user is likely to want to change will varybased on factors like the type of approach selected and where the useris in the approach. Referring to FIG. 13 , different keypadconfigurations suited to different circumstances are shown. The firstkeypad from the left will be displayed prior to entering the patternwhere a downwind-to-base approach is selected. The second keypad will bedisplayed when the aircraft is on the downwind leg, allowing quickextension of the distance thereof. The third keypad will be displayedwhen one of the direct-to approaches (direct-to-base or direct-to-final)is selected, allowing quick customization of the report distance. Thefourth keypad (last keypad on the right) can be displayed on the baseleg, allowing the user to change the glide path angle for landing.

The GUI system 100 allow for keypad adaptation for circumstances bymonitoring the location of the aircraft and designating regions aroundthe various portions of a designated approach. This also permits otherautomatic adaptations of the depicted approach. For example, referringto FIG. 14 , when it is determined that an aircraft has not turned ontothe base leg at the original end of the downwind leg, the downwind legis automatically extended, with the remainder of the approach updatedaccordingly (i.e., the base leg is moved to the end of the new downwindleg and the final leg is lengthened commensurately). Preferably, theadjustment is made based on aircraft speed to give, for each automaticextension, another 15 seconds of flight before the new base leg isreached.

Similarly, referring to FIG. 15 , if an aircraft is detected entering adeparture region (preferably at least 300 feet below pattern altitude),the depicted pattern is updated with the automatic display of adeparture leg and a crosswind leg to return the aircraft to the downwindleg for another attempted landing. When a straight-in approach isselected, such that the downwind side of the runway is not previouslydesignated, right and left (R and L) indicators can also be generatedautomatically, allowing the user to indicate quickly which side of therunway the go-around pattern should be generated.

When an aircraft reaches the base leg (or predetermined distance out ondirect-to-final and straight-in approaches), a region monitoringfunction will automatically trigger the display of a glide path guidanceindicator. Referring to FIGS. 16-18 , a guidance indicator visuallyindicates whether the aircraft is above or below the glide path. In FIG.18 , the crosshair is centered on the vertical centerline, meaning theaircraft is horizontally on the glide path, and also centered betweenthe two horizontal lines, meaning the aircraft is vertically on theglide path. In FIG. 17 , the guidance indicator shows the aircraftvertically on the glide path, but horizontally to the right of the glidepath. In FIG. 18 , the guidance indicator shows the aircrafthorizontally on the glide path but vertically below it. A manual changeof glide path will automatically change the display to the new glidepath.

In a straight-in approach, an aircraft simply approaches along thebearing of the runway from some predetermined distance away from therunway, beginning its descent at an appropriate point along that longleg. Often, in part to allow better visualization of traffic conditionsprior to landing, a VFR approach begins with the aircraft entering—apredetermined entry point—a downwind leg parallel with the runway andfinal leg, passing the end of the of the runway on the downwind leg by apredetermined distance and turning 90 degrees onto a base legperpendicular with the downwind leg. The base leg terminates at itsintersection with the final leg, with the aircraft turning another 90degrees onto the final leg and descending for a landing. Other VFRapproaches include direct-to-final and direct-to-base, with the aircraftentering the pattern by turning onto final and base legs, respectively,at a predetermined report distance from the respective end thereof.

Preferred parameters of approaches are set by official guidelines.Therefore, a theoretical possibility is to plot and follow an approachusing conventional computer-based means—for example, plotting GPSwaypoints at each turn. However, this type of user interface will beimpractical and largely useless in a real-world situation. For instance,the location and direction of downwind and base legs relative to therunway will vary with wind direction, which may not be known withcertainty until the aircraft is already in the vicinity of the airfield.Additionally, even the simplest single airstrip landing site featurestwo runways (i.e., on reciprocal headings of the landing strip), whilemany airfields feature multiple, often intersecting strips. The activerunway will again vary with many factors, and these might not be knownsufficiently far in advance to allow a user to plot all the necessarypoints. Moreover, the three-dimensional aspects of an approach (i.e.,required changes in altitude) could not readily be facilitated usingsuch means.

In addition to the inherent variability of standard VFR patterns, localrequirements and exigent circumstances may require deviations from thestandard patterns. For example, after an aborted landing, the aircraftwill need to be piloted through departure and crosswind legs beforereturning to the downwind leg to re-attempt the landing. As anotherexample, in the presence of traffic in the pattern, it may be necessaryfor the downwind leg to be extended. Simply steering back to apreviously plotted waypoint could be disastrous in these circumstances.

The system and method of the present invention offer various methods forairfield selection. For example, referring to FIG. 19 all airfieldswithin a predetermined or selected vicinity of the aircraft can bedisplayed, both in list form and as selection indicators on a map orchart. This display will preferably be updated periodically in responseto aircraft movement. Advantageously, different colored indicators canbe used to distinguish between different types of airfields (e.g.,public, private, military, helicopter, sea plane base). The user canpreferably pan and zoom the map or chart to display more, fewer, ordifferent airfields. Upon selecting a desired airfield from the map orlist, a view like FIG. 8 is displayed for the selected airfield.

Alternately, a text entry search for airfields could be performed basedon various criteria (e.g., city and state, airfield designator, andairfield name). The search can advantageously filter results based oncharacters entered. For example, if the search text includes a comma,the results can be filtered based on city and state (if at least twoterms separated by a comma) or city (if only one term). If the searchtext does not include a comma, and no characters are entered, then themost recent set of nearby airfields is indicated. If one to twocharacters are entered, then results are filtered by state. If three tofour characters are entered, then the results can be filtered byairfield designator, and if more than four characters are entered theresults can be filtered by airfield name and/or city. This type ofsearch interface leverages unique aspects of airfield data to allow adatabase to be more effectively filtered and yield relevant results morequickly.

For any selected airfield, the present invention can immediatelycalculate all of the necessary information to generate theabove-described interface, simply from having at least onethree-dimensional coordinate and defined length vector(s) therefrom foreach landing strip [e.g., a latitude, longitude and altitude relative toMSL, and a length and bearing (and, if applicable, altitude change) ofthe runway therefrom]. A user can also manually enter such informationfor an airfield, if not already in a database accessible by thesystem/method, at which point all of the above functionality isimmediately available for the newly-defined airfield. For example, for aprocessing unit in signal communication with the database and thedisplay screen, the processing unit can be configured to receiveaircraft location and movement information and determine the displayedcontent and format of the content based on the user input, aircraftlocation and movement information, and associated airfields informationretrieved from the database.

Referring to FIG. 20 , the system and method of the present inventioncan further advantageously include consistent updating of relevantcommunications information and display of this information in a readableformat. As the aircraft proceeds through the approach, the displayedinformation and, as applicable, format will be updated automatically.For non-standard approaches, more general information can still beprovided, such as range and bearing to the airfield, along with altitudeand speed.

Referring to FIG. 21 , the system and method of the present inventionare configured to calculate and draw an arc wherever the plane mayperform a banked turn, such as on entry to the arrival leg, downwindleg, base, final, departure, crosswind, and the like. For example, thearcs in FIG. 21 were calculated for the performance characteristics ofan aircraft traveling at 70-90 knots and 16-25 degrees of bank at onemile and 3-6 degrees per second turn rate. The turn radius increaseswith the size of the pattern to support larger and faster planes. Theratio for arcs within a pattern equates to ¼ of the length of base tosupport level flight on base and crosswind. The arcs can be calculatedand drawn dynamically based on a combination of velocity, bank angle,rate of turn, and turn radius. As an example, turn radius is calculatedas velocity²/(11.26*tan (bank angle)) and rate of turn equals to1091*tan(bank angle)/velocity in knots.

Referring to FIG. 22 , the display screen 104 of the present inventioncan further display a vertical-horizontal indicator (VHI) or glide pathindicator in the upper left corner of the display screen to allow a userto fly a constant heading and slope onto the selected runway. The VHIshows the slope and the corresponding rate of descent (ROD) an aircraftshould follow. The VHI allows a user to fly a constant slope onto theselected runway through moving vertical and horizontal bars (see whitebars at the upper and left-hand sides of the VHI). Tapping the VHIallows a pilot to change the slope value. For example, referring to FIG.23 , tapping the VHI will cause a keypad to appear automatically. Theuser can change the slope value. Referring to FIG. 24 , the new slopevalue is confirmed in the VHI on the upper left corner of the displayscreen.

The system has the ability to input information to define a specifiedarea as landing runway and generate a suitable approach patternassociated with the custom created runway. For example, referring toFIG. 25 , a private runway is shown but the airfield has no publishedapproach patterns. A user can create a suitable approach pattern usingthe user interface of the system. Specifically, when a user taps a“Custom” button, the system will display a manual entry box on thescreen to allow the user to create a suitable approach pattern to theprivate runway. Specifically, the system will compute an upwind leg, acrosswind leg, a downwind leg, a base leg, and final approach based onthe aircraft location and runway location. The system can compute one ormore approach patterns suitable for any landing area.

Referring to FIG. 26 , as an example, a user taps at both ends of aselected runway or enters the latitude and longitude for both ends ofthe runway. The system can automatically confirm the creation of thelanding site by naming it “user” and assign numbers to the runway, forexample, runway 13-31, as shown in FIG. 27 . The system is configured togive a user the length of the defined runway, for example, 3343 ft, andthe field elevation (MSL) at each end, for example, 67 m and 94 m, asshown in the figure. By comparing both ends, the user can determine thatrunway 13 will be an uphill landing and runway 31 will be a downhilltakeoff. Once the user taps “Accept”, the system will create one or moreapproach patterns for each runway automatically.

Similarly, referring to FIG. 28 , a user can define a landing site for aseaplane by tapping at both ends of a desired lane or region. The systemautomatically confirms the creation of the lane by naming it “User” andassigning numbers to the defined lane, for example, lane 10-28. Thesystem provides the length of the lane created: 10,462 feet and theelevation (MSL) at each end. Once the user taps “Accept”, the systemwill create all the approaches for each lane automatically.

Referring to FIG. 29 , a user can also define a landing site andassociated landing path for a helicopter. For example, a user can selectapproach type “90” and “above ground level” (AGI) input keypad appearson the display screen. Referring to FIG. 30 , a user inputs “800” feetas AGI. Then a ROD window appears on the display screen and shows “100ft/min” (FIG. 31 ). Then a descent rate target indicator is shown on theupper left corner of the display screen, indicating current descent ratein relation to the target descent rate and a terrain approximation bandis drawn along descent path (FIG. 32 ).

Referring to FIGS. 33-45 , the display screen can be configured todisplay a split view of a HUD on the left side and an overhead graphicalview on the right side of an airfield to be approached. FIGS. 33-45 arefor example only. Other split view arrangements can be used. Forexample, the HUD view can be on the right side and the overheadgraphical view on the left side of the display screen. Or the split viewcan be split vertically instead of horizontally. For example, the HUDcan be on the top of the display screen, and the overhead graphical viewon the bottom of the screen. The HUD can also be overlaid on top of theoverhead graphical view, just as the overhead graphical view can beoverlaid on top of the HUD. Alternatively, the views can be displayed ontwo separate devices.

The HUD visually indicates the aircraft's position in relation to aplanned path (e.g., above, below, to the left, to the right). Theaircraft in HUD is indicated by the crosshairs. In the depictedembodiment, the HUD integrates a moving square guidance box in relationto an aircraft. The moving guidance box indicates a real time aircraftposition in relation to a planned approach and landing path. When anaircraft is centered between two vertical lines of the square guidancebox, it means the aircraft is horizontally located on the approachand/or landing path. When an aircraft is centered between the twohorizontal lines of the square guidance box, it means the aircraft isvertically located on the approach and/or landing path.

The overhead graphical view on the right side of the display screen isan aerial or satellite view of an airfield. Other overhead graphicalviews can be employed, such as standard aviation charts, and airfieldinformation diagrams. In the depicted embodiment, the overhead graphicalview on the right side of the display screen includes a selectedapproach pattern of an airfield (e.g., airfield KORL).

Two square check boxes are shown on the overhead graphical view. Thesetwo check boxes are configured to be superimposed automatically on twoadjacent crucial points (e.g., turning point, altitude gate) on anapproach pattern. Specifically, the crucial points include an altitudegate on an arrival leg, a downwind leg, a base leg, and one or moreturning points there between. An altitude gate represents the point atwhich the aircraft should have descended to a specific altitude, and itis usually drawn at a predetermined distance before an entry point. Adescent gate represents a point at which the aircraft should begindescending to an altitude so as to intercept the proper glide path onthe final approach. The descent gate is usually drawn at a 90-degreeangle to the beginning of a runway being approached. When an aircraftreaches the final approach, a glide path intercept gate isadvantageously also displayed prior to actual interception of a glidepath altitude.

Referring to FIGS. 33-34 , as the aircraft is flying on the approachleg, the two check boxes on the overhead graphical view are an altitudegate on the approach leg and a turning point between the approach legand the downwind leg. At the moment captured in these figures, thecorresponding guidance box is located on the center of the HUD display,and the aircraft fits in the center of the guidance box, which indicatesthat the aircraft is on the planned approach path.

Referring to FIGS. 35-36 , as the aircraft flies through the altitudegate on an approach leg, the two check boxes on the overhead graphicalview are the turning point between the approach leg and the downwind legand an altitude gate on the downwind leg. At the moment captured inthese figures, HUD shows the guidance box on the right side of theaircraft. A pilot needs to turn right to follow a planned approach andlanding path.

Referring to FIG. 37 , as the aircraft passes through the turning pointbetween the approach leg and the downwind leg, HUD shows the guidancebox still on the right side of the aircraft, but closer to the centerthan in FIGS. 35 and 36 . This means a pilot still needs to make a minorright turn to follow the planned approach and landing path.

Referring to FIG. 38 , when the aircraft passes through the turningpoint between the approach leg and the downwind leg, HUD shows theaircraft positioned in the center of the guidance box, meaning theaircraft is right on the approach and landing path.

Referring to FIG. 39 , the aircraft has passed through a turning pointbetween the approach leg and downwind leg and is on the downwind leg. Atthe moment captured in this figure, the two check boxes on the overheadgraphical view are an altitude gate on a downwind leg and a turningpoint between the downwind leg and a base leg. HUD shows the aircraft onthe top of the square guidance box but centered between the two verticallines of the square guidance box. This means the aircraft is above thecalculated altitude on the planned descent course. A pilot will need todecrease the aircraft altitude to fit the aircraft symbol to the squareguidance box.

Referring to FIG. 40 , the aircraft is flying through an altitude gateon the downwind leg. HUD shows the aircraft still slightly above thecalculated altitude on the descent course. The pilot will still need todecrease the aircraft altitude to fit the aircraft symbol to the centerof the square guidance box in HUD.

Referring to FIG. 41 , the aircraft has flown through the altitude gateon the downwind leg. At the moment captured in this figure, the twocheck boxes on the overhead graphical view are a turning point betweenthe downwind leg and the base leg and a turning point between the baseleg and final leg. HUD shows the square guidance box on the left side ofthe aircraft. This indicates the pilot will need to turn the aircraft tothe left to follow the planned approach and landing path.

Referring to FIG. 42 , the aircraft is on the turning point between thebase leg and final leg. At the moment captured in this figure, the twocheck boxes on the overhead graphical view are still the turning pointbetween the downwind leg and the base leg and the turning point betweenthe base leg and the final leg. HUD shows the square guidance box stillon the left side of the aircraft, but more in the center than shown inFIG. 39 . This indicates the pilot will need to make a minor left turnto follow the planned approach and landing path.

Referring to FIG. 43 , the aircraft has flown through the turning pointbetween the downwind leg and the base leg. At the moment captured inthis figure, the two check boxes on the overhead graphical view are theturning point between the base leg and the final leg and a landingpoint. HUD shows the guidance box on the left side of the aircraft,meaning the pilot will need to turn the aircraft to the left to followthe planned landing path.

Referring to FIG. 44 , the aircraft is flowing through the turning pointbetween the base leg and final leg. At the moment captured in thisfigure, the two check boxes on the overhead graphical view are theturning point between the base leg and final leg and a landing point.HUD shows the aircraft in the center of the two vertical sides of thesquare guidance box, and on the upper portion of the square guidancebox. This indicates a pilot will need to decrease the altitude slightlyof the aircraft to follow the planned landing path.

Referring to FIG. 45 , the aircraft is flying at the final leg. At themoment captured in this figure, the two check boxes on the overheadgraphical view are the landing point and a distant point along with therunway and the final leg. HUD shows the square guidance box on thecenter between the two vertical sides of the square guidance box, butthe aircraft is on the top of the square guidance box, meaning a pilotwill need to decrease the altitude of the aircraft to follow the plannedlanding path.

Referring to FIG. 46 , the aircraft is landing. At the moment capturedin this figure, the two check boxes in overhead graphical view are thesame as those in FIG. 45 . HUD shows the aircraft symbol in the centerof the square box, meaning a pilot is right on the planned landing pathand is expected to have a successful landing.

It can be seen from FIGS. 33-46 that as the aircraft gets closer tointercept, the size of the square box can increase in HUD and then fadesaway as an aircraft lands safely. The size, shape and color of thesquare box on the HUD can be customized as desired.

In an approach and/or landing, a pilot only needs to maneuver theaircraft to make it go through the center of the moving guidance box andlead down to a runway or landing surface. The HUD enables a pilot toview the status of approach and landing without refocusing to viewoutside of an aircraft and/or other instruments on the aircraftinstrument panel. The HUD makes the aircraft's approach and landingintuitive and significantly improves the safety of landing.

FIG. 47 indicates a full screen HUD rather than a split view as shown inFIGS. 31-44 when a user desires.

FIG. 48 is a split screen view of a HUD superimposed on a camera view onthe left side and an overhead graphical view on the right side. Thesuperimposed HUD can provide a realistic and intuitive view of theoutside world. FIG. 49 is a full-screen HUD display of FIG. 48 .

FIG. 50 illustrates a HUD on a user's mobile device or a visor on ahelmet. This enables the system 10 to be incorporated into a real or asimulated (e.g., gaming) environment.

Referring to FIG. 51 , according to one embodiment of the presentinvention, a method for facilitating aircraft approach includes, at step5102, storing information on one or more airfields and one or moreapproach patterns associated with the one or more airfields in adatabase of a computer-based system. The airfield information stored inthe database includes airfield information, runway information andrunway end information. As an example, the airfield information includescoordinates, an identifier, a designator, a location indicator, name,type, filed elevation, ownership type, manager and radio frequencyassociated with one or more airfields. As another example, runwayinformation includes an identifier, designator, length, width,composition, surface condition, and longitude and latitude of runwayends. As another example, the runway end information includes anidentifier, a designator, coordinates, bearing, elevation, elevation ofa touchdown zone, and a glide path associated with the runway end.

At step 5104, an approach pattern is selected based on location andmovement of an aircraft via a user input interface of the computer-basedsystem. An approach pattern selection includes conducting a text entrysearch for airfields stored in the database based on one or morecriteria (e.g., city, state, airfield designator, and airfield name,etc.). The approach pattern can be selected based on one or more ofairfield name, airfield identifier, and aircraft location. In oneembodiment, if an approach pattern is not available for selection, asuitable approach pattern can be created via inputting aircraft andrunway information.

At step 5106, the aircraft movement corresponding spatially to theselected approach pattern is determined via a processing unit of thecomputer-based system. As another example, rate of descent is determinedif the aircraft is a helicopter. The approach pattern is periodicallyupdated in response to the aircraft movement. When a runway the aircraftapproaches is moving, a real-time location of the moving runway is takeninto account in calculating aircraft movement corresponding spatially tothe selected approach pattern.

At step 5108, the aircraft movement corresponds spatially to theapproach pattern in a selected view is displayed via a display screen ofthe computer-based system. As an example, selected view includes a glidepath guidance indicator indicating whether an aircraft is verticallyabove or below a glide path. As another example, a selected viewincludes an overhead graphical view (e.g., aerial view, satellite view)showing one or more of a runway, a pattern altitude, an entry angle, andrespective lengths associated with and one or more altitude gates anddescent gates associated with the approach pattern. Other views such asHUD can be superimposed on a camera view. The selected view can alsoinclude one or more of aircraft coordinate, altitude, horizontalaccuracy, vertical accuracy, course, speed, timestamp of the aircraft inreal-time. The selected view can be displayed in a specific orientation.Colored indicators are used to distinguish between different types ofairfields. An airfield information diagram and a standard aviation chartcan also be displayed on the display screen if needed.

It will be appreciated that the user interface implemented by the systemand method of the claimed invention allows for a highly intuitivemaneuver guidance for pilots, enhancing safety of arrival, approach andlanding. The system can be used to facilitate aircraft arrival,approach, and landing is real-time. The system can be used by studentpilot, novice, and airline pilots, instructors, air traffic controllers,airfield operators, military, and regulatory agencies. The systemprovides an enhanced experience in performing a safe approach andlanding at any moving runway in the world. The system can also be usedin traffic simulation in gaming environment.

The disclosed method does not require maintenance of ILS and greatlyreduces maintenance cost. The system is also versatile and can be usedfor any moving landing surface anywhere in the world. The disclosed userinterface system can be used by aircraft, such as helicopters, airplanesand unmanned aerial vehicles.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated the system and method of thepresent invention implement a user interface that allows a computer tofacilitate the complex, changeable and circumstance dependent aircraftlanding and approach evolutions. As discussed above, the computer-basedsystem and method can also advantageously interface with autopilots,navigational systems and other networks and devices to furtherfacilitate landing and approach. The computer-based system can also beused in aircraft departure. In this scenario, aircraft departure patterncan be calculated and displayed.

The above embodiments are provided for exemplary and illustrativepurposes; the present invention is not necessarily limited thereto.Rather, those skilled in the art will appreciate that variousmodification, as well as adaptations to particular circumstances, willfall within the scope of the invention as herein shown and described.

What is claimed is:
 1. A graphical user interface (GUI) system forfacilitating aircraft approach and landing, the system comprising: adisplay screen; an airfield database including runway information for atleast one airfield; and a processing unit in signal communication withthe airfield database and the display screen and configured to: displayan overhead graphical view on the display screen, the overhead graphicalview including the airfield with at least one selectable runwayindicator associated therewith; after receipt of a runway selection,display a plurality of selectable visual flight rules (VFR) approachpattern indicators to the user on the overhead graphical view; and afterreceipt of an VFR approach pattern selection, display on the overheadgraphical view a selected VFR approach pattern, the selected VFRapproach pattern being automatically determined based on the runwayinformation.
 2. The GUI of claim 1, wherein the processing unit isfurther configured to: receive location inputs from a user for ends ofat least one runway of an airfield not already in the airfield database;and automatically generate runway information based on the locationinputs and store the runway information in the airfield database.
 3. TheGUI of claim 2, wherein the processing unit is configured to receiveinputs of latitude and longitude for the ends of the at least onerunway.
 4. The GUI of claim 3, wherein the processing unit is furtherconfigured to receive inputs of elevations for the ends of the at leastone runway.
 5. The GUI of claim 3, wherein the processing unit isconfigured to receive the location inputs as selections of points on theoverhead graphical view.
 6. The GUI of claim 2, wherein the at least onerunway is on water.
 7. The GUI of claim 2, wherein the runwayinformation includes reciprocal runway heading numbers.
 8. The GUI ofclaim 7, wherein the runway information further includes a runwaylength.
 9. The GUI of claim 7, wherein the processing unit is configuredto subsequently display the at least one selectable runway indicator asone of the reciprocal runway heading numbers at a corresponding one ofthe ends and to display another selectable runway indicator as anotherof the reciprocal runway heading numbers at another corresponding one ofthe ends.
 10. The GUI of claim 9, wherein the processing unit isconfigured to display each of the plurality of selectable VFR approachpattern indicators at a beginning of the selected runway.
 11. The GUI ofclaim 10, wherein the processing unit is configured to display theplurality of selectable VFR approach pattern indicators on the overheadgraphical view with straight-in and direct-to-final indicators alignedwith the selected runway, downwind-right and direct-to-base-rightindicators being located to the right of the straight-in anddirect-to-final indicators, respectively, and the downwind-left anddirect-to-base-left indicators being located to the left of thestraight-in and direct-to-final indicators, respectively.
 12. The GUI ofclaim 1, wherein the processing unit is configured to display theselected VFR approach pattern on the overhead graphical view using a setof default pattern values.
 13. The GUI of claim 12, wherein theprocessing unit is configured with a plurality of sets of defaultpattern values, differing based on aircraft category.
 14. The GUI ofclaim 13, wherein the processing unit is configured to display on theoverhead graphical view a status indicator that indicates which of theplurality of sets of default pattern values is in use.
 15. The GUI ofclaim 12, wherein the processing unit is configured to display on theoverhead graphical view a keypad permitting a user to select differentvalues for the set of default pattern values.
 16. The GUI of claim 15,wherein the processing unit is configured to update selections availableon the keypad based on the VFR approach pattern selection.
 17. The GUIof claim 16, wherein the processing unit is configured to receive acurrent aircraft location input and to update selections available onthe keypad based on where an aircraft is relative to the selected VFRapproach pattern.
 18. The GUI of claim 15, wherein the processing unitis configured to permit a user to select different values for at leastone of: pattern altitude, entry angle, downwind leg length, base leglength, report distance and glide path angle.
 19. The GUI of claim 1,wherein the processing unit is configured to receive a current aircraftlocation input and to automatically adapt the selected VFR approachpattern based on the current aircraft location input.